NBC VP: US Needs Intellectual-Property Rights Protection Plan

NBC Universal Executive Vice President Rick Cotton said Thursday the Obama administration and the business community must develop and implement a national strategy to combat intellectual-property fraud.

U.S. firms across several sectors are facing lagging revenue, which is thwarting economic prosperity, innovation and employment, Cotton told reporters at a roundtable discussion at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce here.

“We can’t wait. We have to take every step we can right now in terms of strengthening enforcement,” said Cotton, who is also general counsel of NBC Universal, a unit of General Electric Co. (GE).

The Chamber outlined its agenda regarding intellectual-property rights at the roundtable. It has sent letters to Congress and President Barack Obama urging leaders to more aggressively protect companies’ intellectual-property rights by cracking down on Internet piracy and the exchange of counterfeit goods.

The Chamber also called on the administration to develop a national strategy by this summer at the roundtable.